WHITE PLAINS – The New York Power Authority (NYPA) today announced that the renewable energy credits (RECs) it purchased on behalf of its Green Power Program customers avoided more than 93,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2010.

NYPA purchased the RECs from new and existing renewable energy facilities connected to the power grid. The CO2 emissions avoided are equivalent to what would be removed each year by over 18,000 acres of pine forests through natural sequestration.

The Power Authority was recently notified of the quantity of avoided emissions by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). The DEC determined the amount of avoided emissions based on information provided by NYPA in its annual Voluntary Renewable Energy Program submittal.

In total, NYPA’s Green Power Program grew by over 25 percent from 170 gigawatt hours (GWh) in 2009, to nearly 213 GWh in 2010. Specifically, NYPA provided over 102 GWh of Green-e Energy-certified RECs to its customers in addition to over 110 GWh of RECs that will be verified by the New York State Department of Public Service. Some of NYPA’s customers that have participated in the Green Power Program are the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the City of New York, through its Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS).

“NYPA will continue to meet the needs of its customers, seek out opportunities to support the development of innovative renewable energy projects in New York State, and support Governor Cuomo’s aggressive renewable energy goals,” said Scott Brown, NYPA Director of Market Analysis and Hedging. “All of this contributes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and to further diversifying the state’s energy sources.”

The Power Authority has a long history of supporting renewable energy. In 2005, NYPA entered into agreements with its New York City governmental customers that included the authorization to purchase RECs on their behalf. By aggregating the renewable energy demand of its customers, NYPA can negotiate lower prices, when compared to fulfilling needs on an individual basis, as well as support the development of new utility scale projects.

“Through Mayor Bloomberg’s commitment to a cleaner and more affordable energy future, several years ago, the City of New York committed to purchase 13 megawatts ( MW) of wind power as part of the energy mix it obtains through NYPA,” said Edna Wells Handy, Commissioner of DCAS. “This commitment enabled the construction of a 91 MW farm of wind turbines that have been supplying us since February 2008. DCAS is honored to have played a role in fostering regional renewable energy development.”

RECs represent the property rights to the environmental benefits of renewable electricity generation. A REC can be sold separately from the underlying electricity associated with a renewable-based generation source. RECs provide buyers flexibility in procuring green power and applying the renewable attributes to the electricity use at a facility of choice.

In addition to purchasing RECs to support existing facilities, NYPA executed two long-term agreements in 2010 to enable the development of two new renewable energy projects in New York State--the Taylor Biomass project in Orange County and Albany Energy Landfill Gas facility--both of which are currently under construction.

NYPA’s customers purchase renewable energy to fulfill their compliance obligations, to support their own environmental policies and sustainability objectives, and to achieve or maintain standards required for LEED-certified buildings, otherwise known as “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.” LEED was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council to serve as a national benchmark in the design, construction and operation of environmentally friendly buildings. Buildings such as NYPA’s administrative office in White Plains achieve ascending levels of certification by fulfilling various requirements, including purchasing minimum percentages of energy from renewable resources.

About NYPA:

■The New York Power Authority uses no tax money or state credit. It finances its operations through the sale of bonds and revenues earned in large part through sales of electricity.
■NYPA is a leader in promoting energy efficiency, new energy technologies and electric transportation initiatives.■It is the nation's largest state public power organization, with 17 generating facilities in various parts of New York State and more than 1,400 circuit-miles of transmission lines.
■Approximately 80 percent of the electricity it produces is clean renewable hydropower. Its lower-cost power production and electricity purchases support hundreds of thousands of jobs throughout the state.■For more information, www.nypa.gov